I Think You And My Friends Should Hang Out On The Weekends

Bonus points for anyone who recognizes that title from a song…

Friday: Amanda and I got manicures at Studio Nail & Spa in Mt. Pleasant. I like this place a lot because it’s really clean and the employees are really nice. I left my nails painted in OPI’s “Your Web or Mine?”

That evening we visited Daryl, our favorite server at Hall’s. This man takes good care of us.

He gave us a random cookie & strawberry plate. He’s the sweetest!

Saturday morning Boding and I got breakfast paninis at Great Harvest. I always get the ham, egg, and Swiss.

Because I now carry around the Sriracha in my purse (not a joke), Boding added some to his sandwich and exclaimed, “Now I get why you put this on everything.”

Later at Target, I found Candy Corn M&Ms. These are SO good. They taste more like cake than candy corn though, which is fine by me. They might be my new favorite, or at least tied with pretzel M&Ms. Get some immediately.

Saturday night a few of us went to a friend’s house before going out. We found what appeared to be a torture chair…

…then were told it was actually an old dentist chair. So yeah, still a torture chair. However, we did have fun posing with it.

We finished up the night with an “Xtina” at The Macintosh. Jackson made this drink up for me a while back. It’s habanero-infused St. Germain, lime juice, agave, and soda water. Sometimes he replaces the St. Germain with ghost pepper-infused tequila, which is just as good.

On Sunday, Boding and I went to Second Sunday on King and ran into our best friend Nikki and her baby. We held him so she could shop, ha!

Boding wore a diaper bag!!

How cute is Liam?

Happy Monday!

The Weekend.

Since Thursday, Amanda and I were housesitting at her parents’ house. We cooked a ton of good food (lots of recipes coming!), ate a bunch of desserts, went out with friends, and enjoyed the glorious 80-degree weather.

Friday - Dinner at Next Door in Mt. Pleasant, then drinks downtown at The Macintosh and Hall’s.

Saturday - Healthy cookie baking…which ended up being our dinner. Twice.

More upper King bar hopping with friends.

Tree hugging. Kaye and I doing our usual tree pose in which she’s always in disco ball attire and I’m embracing the pastels. NYC fashion vs. CHS fashion. It’s quite different!

Sunday - Breakfast sandwiches: English  muffins, fried egg, pepper jack cheese, avocado, sriracha. Our mouths were on fire!

Tutti Frutti froyo! Cookies & Cream, White Chocolate, and Peanut Butter with M&Ms, Heath bar, and cookie dough bits.

Sunshine and sunset on the water.

Coming up this week:

• a Spicy White Bean & Chicken Chili recipe
• a  healthy chocolate chip cookie recipe (using chickpeas!)
• review of Next Door
• Clif MOJO bar giveaway!  

Thoughts on Thursday

1. It’s August. Here in South Carolina, I’d rather call it Hotgust. It is, in fact, the hottest month of the year.

While those aren’t scorching temps, each day’s humidity is at least 75%. Would you rather be really cold or really hot?

2 . I’m so in love with these bracelets I bought for Amanda and me today at Handpicked. They’re delicate, simple reminders of not only faith, but our friendship.

3. Last Sunday, the two of us went to La Pizzeria for some takeout. We were extra hungry and quickly decided that we need four different slices of pizzas. To split of course…

San Genarro, Margherita, Pepperoni, Bianco

4. Thanks for the reminder, Jonah.

5. You bet your behind that I immediately thought of Christian Grey when I saw this. This is both a creative and resourceful way to lock up your bicycle.

6. Yes.

7. Great Harvest Bakery has the best sandwiches. Though the fillings aren’t unique, the excellent quality of bread takes simple sandwiches to a whole new level.

Honey whole wheat, turkey, avocado,, tomato, salt & pepper

xo

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. On my desk Tuesday morning, my coworker  left me this pin:

It’s perfect for me. Thanks Elizabeth!

2. These sandals I bought from Lulu’s.

3. You can now buy ketchup in a pouch. This seems like a great way to always have a massive amount of ketchup stashed in my purse. Or have a disaster in my purse.

4. There are Uncrustables imposters at Wal-Mart! What! I wonder how they compare to the real deal. But who cares? My Cut ‘N Seal pocket sandwich maker arrived today, so I’ll be making plenty of my own Uncrustables imposters.

5. As of Monday, I have a new car: a 2010 Honda Accord. My first car was a stick shift, and I’ve missed it ever since. I discovered today that it is impossible to drive a manual in wedges, so I found my shoes a seat.

6. My birthday is in 10 days. This picture is from 22 years ago. Holy crud.

7. My friend Kinsey, is the pastry chef for The Indigo Road restaurant group (Oak, O-Ku, The Cocktail Club, and The Macintosh). For my birthday, she’s making me a Carrot Cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting and toasted pecans. I CANNOT wait.

Did you just drool too?

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. We’ve brought Uncrustables out on the boat a couple times and they’ve been quite a hit. Did you know they just came out with a new flavor? PB & Raspberry on Whole Wheat. Raspberry is my favorite jelly, so this really excites me.

But what’s more exciting is that I found (and won!) a “Press ‘N Seal” ebay! Yep, Pampered Chef makes this nifty tool. Imagine all the possibilities! I’m going to be eating homemade Uncrustables all Summer!

2. Last Friday I told you I had purchased an exercise ball to sit on at work. Rachel, my friend who sits next to me, also bought one! We’ve been bouncing nonstop. I swear, with good music, it really increases our productivity.

Our backs and bums thank us!

3. Bored in traffic on the way to/from work? Channel your inner Boding and read my blog on e-reader!

4. Danielle discovered this candy bar at Trader Joe’s. Who’s tried it?

5. Big Girls Small Kitchen’s post on how to streamline halving cherry tomatoes:

6.

What I’m Loving Wednesday

1. The other day I told my coworker/cube mate Rachel that I thought peanut butter & jelly sandwiches were so much better when someone else made them for you. A couple days later, she brought some in for us!

This made my entire day. Love her!!

2. Greeting cards:

I’m not sure that they’re appropriate, but I love them anyway.

3. The bakers at the Daniel Island Publix are either blind or crazy. I know St. Patrick’s Day is coming, but really? Shouldn’t they have renamed this?

4. Tweet tweet.

5. On the row machine at my gym, there is a fishing game. The fish swims up when you pull, and sinks when you stop. You have to eat the baby fish while avoiding sharks. I was immediately obsessed and couldn’t stop playing. I’ll be so sore in the morning.

Also at the gym, I noticed that I wear entirely too much green and purple. My Longchamp tote, Camelbak bottle, socks, sneakers, and headphones are all in those two colors. Are there any sports teams who wear green and purple? If so, I love them.

6. Spring nail colors. My favorite hues:

Essie’s Lilacism.

O.P.I.’s Bubble Bath. (Giada wears this on her show!)

China Glaze’s For Audrey (Tiffany & Co. Blue)

China Glaze is definitely my favorite nail polish. Some bottles of O.P.I . are too thick, and some bottles of Essie peel too easily. DO NOT waste your time with Essie’s top coat. The best top coat is Seche Vite!

7. New apps. Words With Friends is out. Draw Something is in. I just started playing last night. Here are two drawings that made me happy:

#1 - I have no idea who you are, but thanks!

#2 – The answer is ketchup. Hi Courtney! :)

If you want to play, my username is Christaleena.